Is Print Dead for Reaching Fleet Executives?

Identifying fleets as your business’s main prospects presents a range of challenges for marketers in the trucking industry. It’s not as simple as saying “I want to reach fleets” and start putting out ads.
Fleets range across multiple industries. There are vocational fleets hauling equipment to job sites in the construction industry, over-the-road fleets hauling commercial freight, and intermodal fleets hauling large shipping containers, just to name a few. And they each have different needs and equipment requirements.
While fleets have bigger needs and massive purchasing power, putting together a plan to reach these valuable prospects can be complicated. You know there are different ways you can get an ad in front of and single out your fleet audience. But are decision-makers actually seeing your ad?

This is a common question for marketers.

Should you focus on digital or rely on other, more traditional methods to get your messaging out? There is no simple answer. Digital can be extremely effective and efficient, but you can’t count out the power of print advertising.
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The Reality of Print

If you think print is fading away, you’re wrong. Print is still a strong medium for reaching niche audiences across many industries. This is especially true for older audiences, like many decision-makers at the fleets you need to reach.

In fact, our research shows fleet executives and managers still love and consume print heartily.

Printed magazines are listed by fleet executives as their most frequently used source for trucking industry news. They average around 6.8 points on a scale of 1 to 10. The next closest source is email newsletters, which are listed at about .5 points lower than printed magazines.

This only paints part of the picture.

When you look at the breakdown of where people rate each source for industry news, you get a much more detailed portrait. As you can see below, 50% of fleet executives list printed magazines at an 8 or higher. That means that half of fleet executives place a high value in print. But you might not necessarily see that from a simple 6.8 average.
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The Bottom Line

Fleet executives are adapting to new technologies, but they’re still fully invested in using traditional methods to gather industry information. If you’re going to reach them, you have to build marketing campaigns that match their media consumption.
Millennials – especially in the trucking and construction industries – are not in a position to make big purchase decisions. They may be on the right track, but we’re still years away from seeing a fleet executive staff made up of millennials. Until then, reaching fleet decision makers requires an integrated approach.

When a fleet executive sees an ad in a respected publication, they’re more likely to trust you later in the buying process.

Print can’t be overlooked as a medium for reaching fleet executives. You know how much they value print as a source for industry news, and you need your ads to be seen by the decision makers at a fleet.
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